New Orleans Tax Preparer Indicted For $2 Million Covid Fraud Conspiracy and Making False Statements to Agents

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - On February 27, 2026, DENISE DIXON, age 52, was indicted on multiple counts for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and false statements to federal agents, announced U.S. Attorney David I. Courcelle.

Count One of the Indictment charged DIXON with conspiring to commit wire fraud between 2020 and 2022, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1349 and 1343. In Counts Two through Seven, DIXON was charged with wire fraud, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343. Count Eight charged DIXON with making false statements to federal agents in April 2023, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1343.

According to the Indictment, DIXON owned a tax preparation business in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Indictment alleges that DIXON caused the submission of numerous applications seeking over two million dollars in loans from the Paycheck Protection Program ("PPP") and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan ("EIDL") program on behalf of herself, her family members, and clients. DIXON and her co-conspirators made false representations on the applications and attached falsified tax documentation.

If convicted of Counts One through Seven, DIXON faces a maximum penalty of twenty (20) years of imprisonment, up to three (3) years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000, per count. As to Count Eight, DIXON faces a maximum penalty of up to five (5) years of imprisonment, up to three (3) years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000. A mandatory $100 special assessment fee for each count is also applicable.

U.S. Attorney Courcelle reiterated that an indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.

U.S. Attorney Courcelle praised the work of the Internal Revenue Service, the Department of Homeland Security Investigations, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Maria M. Carboni of the Public Integrity Unit and Edward Rivera of the Financial Crimes Unit are in charge of the prosecution.

For more information on the Department of Justice's response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus. Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice's National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

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